Dominique Weasley: Girl in Progress
by sheisgrace
Summary: If there's one thing Dominique Weasley does better than falling in love, it's falling out of it. She's determined that her seventh year will be different, but what's a girl to do when the boy she's sure is The One already has a girlfriend? Do everything in her power to break them up, of course. Now, if only she could get rid of the insufferable Mason Wood while she's at it...


**Tuesday, August 31st, 2020, lying in bed bemoaning the start of school.**

**Shell Cottage, Tinworth, Cornwall, England, World. **

THINGS TO DO BEFORE SCHOOL STARTS:

1.) Lure Sharon into her cage. May require treats- and at least two other people. Sharon is a rather feisty owl. Some have said rabid, but those people are seriously misguided. She's just a lady who knows what she wants out of life _and _how to get it. Quite admirable when you think about it.

2.) Check house for Sharon' s messes. Lately she's been losing control of her bladder, I think because of old age. One day my mother woke up with droppings next to her pillow and told me if she ever sees any more owl shit around the house she'll personally break Sharon's neck and feed her to us for dinner. A bit harsh if you ask me, but no one ever does. Everyone is _so _mean to Sharon. Just because she's clawed up a couple curtains and sometimes perches outside my brother's window and watches him while he sleeps. It's not _her _fault she has such a strong personality.

3.) Raid Victoire's closet for anything cool she may've left behind. Rule of sisterhood: you move in with your boyfriend, your sister takes your clothes. And shoes. And old tests. I'm pretty sure none of the teachers have updated their assessments since she graduated. I guess Victoire's pack rat habits are useful _sometimes._

4.) Borrow Maman's jar of Sleekeazy Hair Potion.

5.) Ignore her opinion that it is not borrowing if I don't plan on returning it.

6.) Stop by Weasley's Wizard Wheezes and take full advantage of family discount. Only for self-defense, obviously. _I'm_ not an animal, but no one could ever say the same about the rest of my classmates. Don't even get me started on the Puking Pastille Debacle of 2018. It took _ages _to get the smell out of my dormitory.

7.) Do _not- _under ANY circumstances- think about Jacob Zeller.

That last point on my to do list is a lot easier said than done. Jacob Zeller is one of those boys who isn't exactly easy to forget. Not only is he quite possibly the fittest human being to have ever walked the halls of Hogwarts, but according to the Hogwarts Rumour Mill, (AKA Lea Rollins) he was made the Quidditch captain for Ravenclaw's team.

The moment I heard, I wanted to apparate to his house in Tutshill and congratulate him, but my friends advised me not to.

(By "advised" I mean they physically restrained me until I responded to their threats of blackmail.)

They only want what's best for me. In all honesty, I probably wouldn't have received the warmest welcome had I actually stopped by. Jacob and I had been seeing each other for the last few months of sixth year, but hadn't ended on an entirely positive note.

I blame his girlfriend.

Okay, so I get that it may _seem _like I'm the villain in this situation. After all, hadn't Natalie Buckley, former girlfriend of Jacob Zeller, walked in on her boyfriend shagging some blonde bird who, by all accounts, is one of the best looking girls in school? And hadn't she, Natalie Buckley, promptly burst into tears?

Hadn't I, Dominique Weasley, been said attractive girl Natalie Buckley's boyfriend was shagging?

The answer to all those questions is yes. Natalie _did _walk in on Jacob and I shagging, which I suppose is what led to their very public break-up two days later. You know, the one where she called me a "shameless slag" and poured pumpkin juice on my head?

Right. That's the one.

And you know what? I'm aware that I deserved it. Natalie was the one who was wronged in this situation. _I get that. _

That still doesn't change the fact that Jacob and I are so clearly very much meant for each other though.

After Natalie publicly humiliated him, he was a bit reluctant to start something with me so soon. He went off for a bit on how, "Natalie is the one I really love" and "we were a mistake, Dominique" and "I don't think we should keep in touch this summer" and "let's not ever speak again."

Eh.

He was confused, but it's alright. I forgive him.

That's what people in love _do. _

I _know _he loves me too. He told me he was planning to break up with Natalie the day before we left Hogwarts, which would give her all of summer hols to get over him and make us getting together seem less suspicious. Obviously it didn't play out that way, but only because Natalie caught us _three _days before we left.

If she hadn't found us in that broom cupboard, we'd probably be together by now. It's only because Jacob feels so guilty about what he put her through that we aren't.

All that's about to change. Jacob and Natalie have had _three whole months _to get over each other. I guarantee it, by the time I get back to school everybody would've forgotten what happened. Nobody will even notice when Jacob and I start dating again.

Now, let's get started on my to do list.

**2 Minutes Later, Still Bemoaning Start of School**

**Still in Shell Cottage. **

DAMMIT, SHARON! I SHOULD'VE LISTENED TO MAMAN AND JUST GOTTEN A CAT.

AT LEAST _THEY _DON'T SHIT IN CERTAIN SEVENTEEN YEAR OLD GIRL'S SHOES.

At least I was wearing socks.

Sigh.

Thank Merlin for cleaning spells.

**A Lot Later (where the fuck did I leave my watch again?), Kind of Over Start of School Dread**

_**Back **_**in Shell Cottage.**

Remember when I said everyone will have forgotten the whole debacle where Natalie Buckley announced to the whole school that I was shagging her boyfriend?

Right. Well, I may have slightly underestimated the average teenager's memory.

Just slightly.

After I'd cleaned the house of Sharon's "gifts" (my shoes weren't the only ones Sharon victimized. She'd also gotten to my mother's and Louis'. I cleaned out Maman's but didn't bother with Louis' because when I was thirteen, he told Shahzad Reza that I fancied him and I promised him that I'd get revenge when he least expected it), raided Victoire's closet (she took most of the good stuff with her but I _did _find several old exams that should be very helpful. Plus a cute top) and "borrowed" Maman's hair potion I headed over to the Weasley's Wizard Wheezes in Diagon Alley.

Freddie would be working that day, which I _thought _would be nice seeing as I hadn't seen him since James' birthday in June.

I was wrong. Definitely, definitely wrong.

"Hullo, Freddie," I greeted him when I walked into the store. "I've come to abuse my familial connection and buy out your shop for a couple knuts. Only no love potions this time. You remember what happened in fourth year with Peter Barrett."

A voice that was definitely _not _my cousin's replied. "Didn't his girlfriend put you in the Hospital Wing for spiking his afternoon tea with Cupid Crystals?"

I immediately stiffened. Of all the days to visit Freddie, I _had _to choose the day _he _would be there. It was beyond unfair. Obviously the universe hates me. I should just move to a new galaxy and get it over with. At least _he _wouldn't be there.

_He _is Mason Wood. Gryffindor Quidditch captain and… oh wait. That's literally all he does. Play Quidditch. Talk about Quidditch. _Smell _like Quidditch.

_All the bloody time.(!)_

Don't get me wrong, I love Quidditch just as much as the next witch. I'm the best chaser among my cousins, besides maybe James, but there's more to me than just a love for Quidditch. Much more.

Like nice hair. And a sparkling personality. An affinity for unicorns. Etc, etc. The list goes on.

Wood, as you may have surmised from his surname, is the son of Oliver Wood and Fiona Quinn, both former players for Puddlemere United. Last I heard his sister and brother both got picked up out of Hogwarts to be reserves as well, for the Holyhead Harpies and Falmouth Falcons respectively.

I guess Quidditch lunacy is hereditary. Someone should probably inform the authorities. Having them running amuck in our fraught society is far too dangerous! It's only a matter of time before someone gets hurt, or even worse: _death by bludger. _

But I regress.

It wasn't so bizarre that Wood was at WWW. He's Freddie's best mate, so unfortunately I've had to become used to seeing him around outside of school every now and then.

That doesn't mean I have to _enjoy _it though! Or even accept it. As a matter of fact, I _don't _accept it. No. Two years ago, Freddie brought Wood to my brother's thirteenth birthday party and I hid his broom underneath Victoire's bed as a hilarious and clever joke. He went _ballistic _looking for it. Aunt Ginny made some offhand comment that one of the younger kids probably took it and _I kid you not_ Wood forced all cousins below the age of thirteen (he was going to make it fourteen but Maman told him that if he bullied Louis on his birthday she'd personally see to his arrest and subsequent beheading) to line up so he could interrogate them. He almost made poor Hugo wet himself.

Eventually, I was discovered when he spiked everyone's drinks with Veritaserum (Freddie always has a stash with him in case of "emergencies") at dinner, and my parents made me write him an apology letter.

It went something like this:

_Dear Wood, _

_Words cannot express the deep level of emotional turmoil I feel at having caused you such strife. Personally, I could not imagine spending that much time (2.5 hours) separated from an athletic utensil that also can double as a Muggle cleaning product. It must've been very hard for you. Despite my sincerest sympathy at your arduous plight I cannot help but worry at how quickly you decided to drug my entire family. Were you not paying attention in Potions? Side effects to Veritaserum include severe itching of the right ear. We could've all become gravely ill. (Well, maybe not Uncle George.) I can only hope that next time you'll think about your actions before drugging your best mate's family and friends. _

_Beneficially scolding you,_

_Dominique Gabrielle Weasley. _

_P.S. What would you have done if I stole your playbook? Hang us over a flaming pike until we confessed? _

_P.P.S. I'm not saying this as your friend, but you should probably learn to prioritize. _

_P.P.P.S. I almost forgot- disregard anything I might've told you about your physical appearance while under the influence of such a dangerous drug. Despite it's reputation as being a truth-telling potion, I am rather convinced my courageous blood was able to counteract the effects where it had the opposite reaction with me. Once I disclosed the location of your broom, I started lying like crazy!_

_P.P.P.P.S. That thing I said about losing my virginity to your brother was pretty hilarious, right? Veritaserum's such a cad! _

Well, I may have paraphrased a bit.

The point is, we don't get along. Never have, not since we met on the Hogwarts Express in our first year. We just have different priorities. As I may have mentioned, he holds an obsessive interest in Quidditch and looks down on anything/anyone which does not relate to his obsession.

Mainly, though, he thinks I'm shallow.

Given my past, it's not completely surprising he'd make this assumption. Up until the end of my fifth year, I was basically an Alexandra Davies robot. She's the most awful girl in my year, but we were best friends until I finally stood up to her. Now, I'm basically considered Public Enemy #1 among Alexandra and her minions, which obviously is a fact that has gone straight through Wood's giant, brainless, Quidditch obsessed head. Maybe if he'd spend more time actually paying attention to his surroundings and less time daydreaming about Quidditch tactics he might actually manage to trick a girl (or boy. I don't know what he likes) into fancying him.

He isn't bad looking. Unfortunately for me, thanks to the Veritaserum, he's aware of that.

"Where's Freddie?" I asked, refusing to answer his question. (The Peter Barrett situation was only a _little_ bit true but knowing Wood he'd blow it completely out of proportion.)

"In the back," he answered casually. For the first time, I noticed he was wearing the magenta robes of a WWW employee.

"Fucking hell. You _work _here now?"

He shrugged, almost defensively. "I needed some extra money for the new Nimbus 3000, so George offered me a job here for the summer."

Just so you know, this is quite possibly the cruelest thing my uncle has ever done in the history of ever. I've been trying to get a job with him since I was fourteen, but he's always insisted that Freddie and Roxie would be the only teenagers he'd let work in his shop. Mason Wood is seventeen- unless I've been lied to my whole life, that counts as a teenager.

"Does James know?"

Everyone in my family had wanted a job at WWW some point or another, but James had wanted one the most. He practically spends every spare minute he has in the store, to the point where Uncle George told him he could have a work there after he graduated, even though that would technically be defying his "no teenagers" rule.

Wood scuffled his feet as I looked at him expectantly. As far as I knew, he and James got on well. It's obvious that he's a major contender to be captain next year, and when Lea Rollins stopped by a few days ago to tell me about Jacob, she said that Wood's been personally helping James with his technique all summer.

"He knows," is all Wood said, but his accompanying grimace was indicative enough that James hadn't taken it well.

I clucked my tongue disapprovingly. "You probably could've found a job someplace else."

I expected him to get defensive, but he just shrugged. "Probably."

He looked so defeated, I almost felt bad for him. Defeat is _not _an expression Mason Wood wears well. Freddie told me that last year, when Gryffindor lost the House Cup, he tried to drown himself in the shower. Clearly, this is a boy who needs to learn an urgent lesson in appropriate reactions.

"James will get over it," I assured him, surprising myself. Since when did I reassure _Mason Wood? _

Wood looked just as surprised as I did. "Er, thanks?"

He scratched his stupid, inflated head and gave me a quizzical look through his brown eyes. I felt my ears grow hot and thanked Merlin my hair was long enough to cover them. Unfortunately, my mouth was not as cooperative.

"No problem!" I squeaked. Much to my utter humiliation, my voice had gone up several octaves. "That's what the cousins of your friends are here for! To reassure you in your times of distress. No matter how much they still haven't gotten over the Veritaserum incident of 2018. Which, by the way, is not at all."

I was rambling like a madwoman, but Wood was too stupid to notice. He only frowned.

"Worse 2.5 hours of my life," he muttered miserably. His eyes suddenly sharpened. "Hey, I still haven't asked you- what the bloody hell were you thinking when you shagged my brother?!"

His anger allowed me to forget my embarrassment. "I don't know Wood- maybe I was thinking that I'm in charge of my own body and therefore don't owe anybody any explanations as to what I do with it!"

He reddened (probably because he knew I was right) but he didn't get a chance to respond, because that was when Freddie came rushing down.

"Oi! Mason! Some brainless kid gave another brainless kid puking pastilles and now there is a mess that needs urgent scourgifying upstairs. Dad told me to do it and now I'm telling _you _to do it and if-"

Freddie came to a reeling halt the moment he saw me. His face lit up with his signature grin and his brown eyes glittered mischeivously. "Well, well, well. If it isn't Hogwarts' resident homewrecker. How are you, Slaggy? Slagged it up with any Ravenclaw pricks lately? Or is he still ignoring you?"

"He's not ignoring me!" I exclaimed. I decided to ignore the comment about my being a slag. Sometimes a girl's gotta learn to pick her own battles. "We're taking some time apart to think things through."

Freddie and Wood snorted in unison. "If his idea of "taking time apart" is thinking of ways to get back together with Natalie, then you're definitely both on the same page," Freddie said.

I huffed, willing my ears to stop reddening. "Boys always want what they can't have," I informed them. "Right now, Jacob can't have Natalie. Thus, he wants Natalie. Even though she's dimwitted." I shook my head. "That's beside the point. The point is that eventually Jacob will come to his senses and see that it's me he's really wanted all along. Trust me. I'm part Veela, that means I was born with knowledge of the heart."

"Yes," Wood deadpanned. "As evidenced by your highly successful love life."

I glared at him. "As if _you _could talk "Mr. Never-Ever-Have-I-Ever-Had-a-Girlfriend."

Wood blushed a violent red. "Whatever, Weasley. At least I've never been dumped by everyone I've ever shagged."

Oh! That insolent little prick! Just looking at Wood makes me physically ill, he's such a twit.

"Go clean up that vomit upstairs, wench!" I snapped. "Nobody asked you any way."

Grumbling, Wood made his way upstairs with an enchanted mop, glaring at me the entire time. Once he was gone, I turned to Freddie and grinned.

"No," he immediately said once he got a good look at my face. He went back to shelving or whatever it is he does for a living. His back was turned to me, probably hoping I would leave and stop harassing him, but no such luck.

"You don't even know what I was going to say," I whined, tugging on his robes so he'd look at me. His brown eyes met my blue and softened around the edges a little. Despite our many illustrious arguments, Freddie is my closest cousin. I knew he had my back.

"Yes I do," he sighed. "You were going to ask whether I'd heard anything from Zeller and the answer is no. Contrary to what you and your friends seem to believe, boys don't all get together for tea at the end of the month to discuss our feelings. Even if we did, Zeller wouldn't be invited to my tea party because not only is he on a rival Quidditch team, but he's also a prick. My tea party would only have really deserving blokes. Like that kid with the glow in the dark socks a few years below us. He's so cool."

"Jacob's the Ravenclaw captain now," I practically swooned. "Lea Rollins told me."

"Lea needs to mind her own business," Freddie said. He and Lea used to date in fifth year, but whenever I bring it up he denies it ever happened and says that he could never be seduced by such a demonic woman. Except he was, for five very public and humiliating (for him) months.

"Probably, but she's a useful person to know," I told him. "Wanna know a secret?"

Freddie scowled. "If you heard it from Lea, than no."

I moved to help him with his shelving, but after I dropped a couple bottles of some potion he made me sit down. "It's about Addie Higgs," I tempted him, pouting from my seat.

Freddie stiffened. "Addie Higgs?" he asked.

"Addie Higgs," I confirmed.

For a moment I thought he was going to be tempted, but he seemed to shake himself out of it. "Anything I need to know about Addie, I can learn myself," he said. I didn't know who he was trying to convince more- him or me. "She's a friendly lass. Talkative and whatnot. Very exceptional for a Slytherin."

I shrugged, already bored with the topic of my loser cousin's love life (or lack of). I mean really, how hard can it be to ask a girl out?

"Okay," Wood said with a grimace. He was carrying the mop by two fingers, as if he thought the after effects of puking pastilles could be contagious. "I do not get paid enough for that."

"Take it up with the boss," Freddie shrugged.

Wood sent him a withering glare. "Until your dad comes back, you _are _my boss."

"That's right," Freddie said. "I am. Go clean something else. If you can't find anything else to clean, wait until Dom wets herself at the thought of seeing her beloved again after an entire summer of being ignored."

"I wasn't ignored!" I protested. "Our not seeing each other was a semi-mutual agreement!"

Freddie looked like he was going to keep making fun of me, but Wood interrupted. "As much as I'd love that- and really, cleaning up the mess would be worth seeing your cousin lose her shit- I need to get going. A bunch of us are going to work on some drills in a few."

I perked up at the mention of Wood's Quidditch buddies. "Wood, will-"

"No, your newest boy toy will not be there," Wood said, annoyed. "Zoey Smith however, the one who actually deserves the title of Ravenclaw Quidditch Captain, will be."

"_Zoey? _You think _she _deserved it above Jacob?" I exclaimed.

Wood scowled. Original, I know. "Zeller's a decent keeper, I'll give him that, but he has no discipline or leadership skills. Zoeys not only the best player in Ravenclaw, but she really cares about her team and how well they work as a unit. Zeller's just interested in how fit he looks on a broomstick."

"Very," I gushed, once he finished his rant. Mason Wood was famous around school for his angry rants on "how things were better in the old days" and "what we can do to fix our crumbling society" etc etc. It gets boring after a while so pretty much everyone who's ever had more than one conversation with him has learned to tune out all the annoying bits.

He shook his head and scowled even deeper at me. "You're hopeless," he said.

"You look like a puppy," I blurted out. As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I grimaced.

Wood turned bright red and looked as if he'd just been forced to smell his own dirty Quidditch gear. Freddie, on the other hand, was doubled over laughing.

"And once again, Dominique's word vomit problem provides entertainment for the masses," he said with a grin.

"I don't look like a puppy," Wood protested, tugging his shaggy, light brown hair. His eyes were a lighter blue than mine, and wider too. He really _did _look like a puppy.

I patted his head comfortingly. "There, there," I cooed, determined to shake off my own embarrassment. "You can pretend you look like a pitbull puppy if that makes you feel more masculine." I leaned in closer to Freddie and whispered, just loud enough for Wood to hear, "he's a Yorkie all the way."

Freddie laughed even harder, as Wood scowled even harder. Wood took off the magenta robes that marked him as a WWW employee. "I'm leaving," he announced. "See you later, Freddie. Drown in a lake, Dominique."

"Hey! Not nice!" I called, but my protest was drowned by Freddie's laughter. He'd already left anyway, thank God. If I'd had to spend even a second more with that jerk I don't know what I'd have done. Probably stolen his broomstick again, and we all know how well that turned out last time.

Once Wood had gone I was able to continue my shopping in peace, or as peaceful as WWW ever gets. There was a mishap in the Exploding section, when a young girl got her eyebrows blown off, but I helped hide Freddie so nobody would yell at him. He doesn't do well with people yelling at him, which is surprising coming from our family. I think it has something to do with how laid back his own parents are. Uncle George has always treated his kids more like friends than his children, while Aunt Angelina is definitely more of an adult figure, but also has so few rules in her household that it's almost impossible to break one. Unless you're a seven year old me and didn't know she hates to be woken up before nine in the morning. In which case, you will probably cry.

"Did you get everything you needed?" Freddie asked me as he checked out my purchase.

"Yes," I said with a sunny smile. Upon seeing his grin, my smile faltered. "Unless you're planning anything. Are you planning something?" I demanded.

He only grinned even wider. "I'll just throw this in for free," he told me, picking up an umbrella from underneath the counter. "It's actually Roxie's so don't tell her I gave it to you."

"Great," I grumbled, accepting the umbrella. "If you're stupid prank messes up my hair I'll-"  
"Yeah, yeah, you'll feed me to the Giant Squid," he dismissed my threat with a wave. "Don't worry Dom. I learned my lesson when you threw me in The Black Lake after the Personal Thundercloud Dispute of Third Year."

"Don't forget it," I told him with a stern wagging of my index finger. I disapparted without another word and landed in my family's living room.

Everyone in my immediate family was there and they looked up at me when they saw me land right on top of the coffee table.

"Oh drat!" I exclaimed. "I was trying for my bedroom. Sincerest apologies, family. I only barely passed my Apparition test and still have a little trouble getting the landing right. At least I haven't splinched myself, eh?"

"Dominique," Maman sighed. She'd seen it all before. "Please get off my coffee table."

"Your wish is my command," I told Maman with a cheeky smirk. When I was on the ground I turned my attention to Victoire and Teddy.

"Hey there lovebirds," I greeted them. "How's living in sin been working out for you? Any unexpected pregnancies yet?"

Victoire and Teddy both turned bright red, which, in Teddy's case, meant that everything from his hair to his toes changed color.

"Shut up, Dominique," my sister snapped. "You were supposed to be here thirty minutes ago. We were waiting for you to start dinner!"

I eyed Louis, who had a full plate in his lap and was gnawing on a chicken leg. He shrugged when he saw my gaze. "I got hungry. Did your bird crap in my shoes?"

We all ignored the silly little boy. I set my bag down and we all migrated to the dining room table. As we were moving, Louis kept on insisting that "_somebody _crapped in his shoes" and "if it wasn't Dom's bloody owl than we have a serious problem on our hands" and blah, blah, blah who _cares, _Lou, amiright?

The dinner progressed into pleasant conversation (Maman asks how their work is going, Victoire gushes about how _successful _she and Teddy are getting, Dad tries to convince everyone he knows how to communicate with wolves because of his scar, Louis and I make faces behind Vic's back, Teddy's hair changes color as he tries not to laugh, Victoire notices this and gets angry at us, all accumulating in the big reveal-

"Teddy and I are getting _married _you imbeciles!"

A Weasley household is never silent, but ours was after Victoire dropped that bitch of a truth bomb on us. For a short time, at least. Eventually Maman squealed and went over to hug them, Dad asked at least 17 times if we didn't all think Victoire was a little bit too young to be thinking of marriage, while my brother and I…

We were happy for them. Well, I can't speak for Louis, but I was. Teddy is such a great bloke. A million times better than Vic deserves really, but she's my sister so I'm glad she found someone willing to look past her insanity and love her all the same. So I stopped tormenting my sister and smiled. I hugged them, asked them when the baby was due (I don't think Victoire really appreciated that one but Teddy gave me a discreet high five later so I count it as a win) and was all around pleasant.

After they left I spent some time with Maman cleaning up and tried to console her when she decided Victoire's getting married wasn't the best thing ever because now she'd never come back home and her children would never learn French and she'd bring shame to the Delacour name and blah bloah blah, I eventually got tired and left her sobbing in the kitchen.

I guess I'm a little bit annoyed Victoire waited until THE DAY BEFORE HOGWARTS STARTS to tell me that, because now it's almost midnight and I still haven't finished all my packing. The whole situation is made a little bit better by knowing that tomorrow I'll _finally _see Jacob again. Despite what anyone may say, I know that he cares for me and as soon as he sees me looking fine as hell in my new, too tight uniform, he'll realize it himself.

**Wednesday, September 1st, 2020, sobbing into my potatoes **

**Great Hall, Hogwarts Castle, Scotland, Great Britain, World. **

I've made it!

And, just as I've predicted Jacob Zeller has fallen back into my arms! Natalie Buckley, _who? _

I'm sorry. I lied. Jacob Zeller did _not _fall into my arms as I expected. In fact, he's rather done the opposite.

Ugh. This is too upsetting. I'll just start from the beginning.

In the morning my family all Apparated to Kings Cross, minus Victoire and Teddy, who said goodbye the night before at the fiasco that was our family dinner.

"_Ma cherie Dominique!" _my mother cried as she hugged me. "I can't believe this is your last year!"

Dad winked at me and ruffled my hair. "Good luck fending for yourself next year when I kick you out of the house."

Maman shoved him in the arm. "What?" he exclaimed. "Kids these days have it too easy. She needs to learn to pull herself up by her bootstraps like we did."

Next to him, Louis did an impression of Dad lumbering around, pulling up his bootstraps and wagging his finger at me threateningly. We all laughed and when Dad saw he pulled Lou into a headlock.

"You little twerp," he said. He turned to Maman. "I knew we should've left him with his real parents. Yes, they may have been trolls and I know how you feel about their parenting style, but I think he would've fit in better."

Maman turned to glare at him and I grabbed Louis' hand before it could turn into a full on argument. "_Au revoir_, sweet parents! We'll see you over Christmas! Send Victoire our mutual toleration and disrespect! _Je t'aime!" _

Louis echoed my statements and we boarded the train. Sharon was squawking noisily in her cage and I stopped moving to sooth her. My free little bird hates being cooped up like that, and who could blame her?

"There, there," I murmured to her. "Have a treat, little _bonbon." _I fed her some owl treats I bought and Louis shook his head.

"She's going to become huge," he said. "She's already the slowest owl in all of Great Britain, you don't need to add to the problem."

"Sharon is not a problem," I told him. "She is a living being with her own thoughts and feelings. She can eat what she likes. Our society already dictates how a woman should look and I think that's crap. My baby can be whoever she wants to be."

"You're nutters," was all he said and left me to go find his annoying little Ravenclaw friends.

Little brothers are so obnoxious.

Ever since my fifth year, I've shared a compartment with one of my best friends, Violet Ogden. Our other friend, Madeleine Prescott, is a prefect and leaves us to our own devices every year. It's rude, but we all try not to dwell on it.

"Dom, if you think for one second that you're letting that demonic owl out of it's cage to roam our compartment than you're even madder than you look."

I looked up from where I was fiddling with Sharon's cage. "Vi! Sharon is such a nice owl, you probably wouldn't even notice she was here. Owls aren't meant to be cooped up like prisoners, they're meant to roam free! Look at how sad she is."

Violet ignored the owl cage I thrust into her face, where Sharon was indeed moping. "Dominique, we have company. Do you think you could keep your crazy locked up for a little while?"

On closer inspection, we _did _have company, but I don't see why that means I wasn't allowed to set Sharon free. I listened to Violet though, and took the seat next to her. Across from us sat Ren Kimura, Madeleine's boyfriend, and one of his friends, Finley Parker. My eyes lit up. Not only were Ren and Finley good company, but they were 7th year Ravenclaw boys. As in, they've shared a dormitory with Jacob Zeller, the love of my life, for seven whole years.

"Oh," I said, trying to sound casual. "Hello boys. How was your summer?"

Ren turned to Finley. "Translation: tell me everything you know about Jacob Zeller."

That boy knows me too well! He's been dating Maddie since fourth year, so it's nice to know he's absorbed at least some of my finer qualities.

I grinned. "Well? Don't just sit there with your mouths open. You look like fish. Spill."

"You weren't kidding," Finley said. I wasn't sure if he was talking to Violet or Ren. "She really is obsessed with him."

Violet sighed. "Oh boy," she said.

"Here we go," Ren groaned at the same time.

"Obsessed?" I almost shrieked. "_Obsessed? _We love each other! That's not obsession. He's only the still point of my turning world! I just want to marry him and have his 2.5 children, but I guess the kids are calling that "obsession" these days."

I gave him a disgusted look, letting him know exactly how I felt about the situation.

Finley apologized to me, but he didn't look all that ashamed like I thought he should've. He looked at me like I was barking mad, but I ignored it. Haters were gonna hate, and I couldn't afford to dwell on each and every boy who had something mean to say to me.

"We're not that close to Jacob anyway," Finley said. "He's always been more into his girlfriends than other guys. I saw him once this summer with…"

Ren shoved Finley in the stomach with his elbow and Violet was vigorously shaking her head to and fro. I could feel my heart sink. Call me psychic, but I think I knew who Finley was going to mention.

"His mum," Finley finished. He scratched his head, looking sheepish. "Jacob was hanging out with his mum a lot this summer."

I pouted. "He was with Natalie Buckley, wasn't he?"

Finley gave a hesitant nod and I burst into tears. "How could he be with that tramp?" I wailed into Violet's shoulder.

"Isn't Dominique the one Jacob cheated on Natalie with? Wouldn't that make her the tramp in this situation?" I heard Finley ask Ren. He was shushed by an annoyed looking Ren.

"Oh, Dommie," Violet muttered. She was absently patting my head while also checking for split ends in her own hair. "There are other fish in the sea, he was a bastard anyway, Natalie isn't as pretty as you, etc etc."

Her pep talk inspired me.

Not really. It was awful. But it did inspire me to leave the compartment to buy candy from the Trolley Witch. If my sweet, gentle, loving (ha!) friend couldn't cheer me up, then maybe some chocolate could.

"Four chocolate frogs please," I smiled to the Trolley Witch. As I was being handed my chocolate-y goodness, I saw a familiar looking blur in the corner of my eye. "Jacob!" I gasped and ran to chase after him. I say I "chased after him" because as soon as he heard me say his name, he started running.

I slammed into several students, all of whom were indignant but understanding when they saw me. According to Freddie, I have a bit of a reputation as a menace among the other years. Whatever. I _never _pay attention to idle gossip. Just ask Lea Rollins. Whenever I ask her about a juicy rumour I heard, I always make it a point to twirl my hair as if I were uninterested.

My running was no use. "Wait!" I called after Jacob's retreating figure. "Can't we just talk?"

Despite my pleading, he didn't stop. He disappeared into a compartment and I considered following him, but didn't want to make a spectacle of myself.

Just kidding. Almost had you there, didn't I? I was really stopped by the annoying 7th year Ravenclaw prefect, Jillian Samson. Or, as her shiny new badge indicated, Hogwarts' latest Head Girl.

_Damn. _What's up with the 7th year Ravenclaws? They're everywhere.

"Samson," I greeted.

"Weasley," she returned. "No running in the corridor."

We glared at each other for a good five minutes. Though she doesn't know it, Samson and I are arch enemies. Ever since first year, I've hated her. She has blonde hair and blue eyes, like me, but that's where the similarities end. She's a bitter know-it-all with a borderline obsessive love for Gobstones. I'm a spunky part Veela with a borderline obsessive love for… well, love.

The Veela influence is strong. I'm telling you, just look at Louis. According to Molly and Lucy, he's the most sought out boy in all of fifth year. And he doesn't even _try _to hide the fact he hasn't brushed his hair since the Stone Age.

"Sorry Jillian," I told her. For the sake of time I tried to mask my consuming dislike of her. At my apology she lifted her pale brows in a questioning gaze and I repressed the urge to hex her stupid, perfect eyebrows off. "I was just looking for someone. You haven't seen Jacob Zeller around, have you?"

Jillian crossed her arms and looked down on me. If she had been wearing glasses, she would've looked eerily like Madame Pince. "Dominique, you have to leave Jacob alone. It's clear that he was never really interested. Your obsessive mooning over him isn't conducive to our learning environment."

Oh, she wanted a "conducive, learning environment"? _I'd _give her a conducive learning environment the smarmy, annoying little bitch. I would've too, but of all people, my cousin James had to step in.

James is a year younger than I am and usually looks even more so, but there's something in his stance and steely hazel eyes that makes him seem older. It's a flinty look that I've never seen on him anywhere other than the Quidditch pitch, but he was giving it to Jillian Samson right then.

"Fuck off, Jillian," James scowled. "Leave Dom alone."

I beamed as Jillian stuttered. Her flawless, creamy skin turned bright red and her eyes darkened. The princess clearly wasn't used to being spoken to in such a manner.

James just stood his ground. His hair had grown out a bit since the last time I'd seen him, so it was a little past the top of his ears now. Still shorter than Albus' ridiculous shaggy hairstyle, but longer than James usually liked his wild curls. He'd put on some muscle as well, but not too much. Just enough to make him lean and hard.

Alright. It's time to face the facts. James is _fit. _In fact, if he wasn't my cousin, I'd probably- No. No, Dominique. Do _not _go down the route of cousin lusting. Life is already hard enough as it is with your current romantic issues at hand.

"10 points from Gryffindor," Jillian said after a pregnant pause. Taking a deep breath, the redness in her face started to fade but her eyes stayed dark. "Congrats, you two. I don't think I've ever taken away points from anyone before we've actually arrived at the castle. Maybe you've set a record."

"Here's hoping," James said in a dry tone of voice.

She sniffed and flounced off, school skirt rising with her sudden departure. I caught James staring and smacked him on the back of his head. 'Oi!" I exclaimed. "No ogling the enemy!"

He gave me the shameless grin he was so famous for. "Is that any way to speak to the cousin who rescued you from an evil Head Girl?"

My eyes softened. "Yes, thank you for that."

James's entire demeanor changed. He looked away from me and his smile tightened. "No problem," he said. His voice sounded strange, and in retrospect, I should've known that something was going on because what he was going to say next was too out of character to be taken seriously.

"I think Samson was trying to throw you off Zeller's tail," he said. "He's with Natalie, but I can help you distract her if you like."

My eyes narrowed. James sounded nonchalant, but his dislike of Jacob is well known, at least in my family. As if reading my mind, James shook his head.

"No games," he promised. "I can just tell how much you like him and I want to help."

Well _that _was off, as was the innocent, unassuming look in his eyes. Still, I was so eager to talk with Jacob I accepted what James said at face value.

"I'll get Natalie out," he said to me once I'd agreed. "Then you go in and ambush, um, I mean talk to, Jacob."

I shot him a look, but in the end I only nodded. "Thank you," I told him.

James shrugged and went in to the devil's lair. (Jacob's compartment.) He was hardly inside for a minute before the door opened again.

"For the last time James," a familiar, high pitched voice said. "The answer is _no." _

James shrugged apologetically. "I tried," he said.

He hurried away and I was left standing face to face with none other than the devil herself, Natalie Buckley.

We blinked at each other for a few moments without saying anything. Then, she scowled at me, crossing her arms across her chest.

"What the fuck do you want, Weasley?"

I scowled right back. "What did James just ask you?"

She glared. "That's none of your business."

"Seeing as he's _my _cousin and not _your _cousin, I'd say that yes, it is my business," I huffed.

Her eyes narrowed. I could practically see the steam coming out of her ears. "You just think you're entitled to everything in my life, don't you? First my boyfriend, now my friends. What's next? You want to start hanging out with my parents, too? I'm sure you think they'd enjoy having you as a daughter."

I didn't even know James was friends with Natalie Buckley. The few friends of his I'd met I liked, but if this was the kind of company he keeps I might have to reevaluate my opinions. Or, I could just write a letter to Aunt Ginny telling her how worried I was about James spending time with negative influences. Maybe I could even get her to kick up enough of a fuss to get the headmistress to expel Buckley. Merlin knows she deserves it.

"I don't want your shitty life, Buckley. All I want is to talk with Jacob," I hissed at her.

Her eyes widened. "Seriously? You have the nerve to come to _my _compartment, asking to talk to _my _boyfriend after I caught you _fucking him? _Everyone always says you're mental, but I had no idea you were _this _batshit."

Well, when she put it like that, I do sound a little crazy. Leave it to Natalie Buckley to make a perfectly normal request seem sinister.

"I know he's in there!" I almost shouted, becoming more flustered by the second. "Just let me _talk _to him, you insufferable hag!"

By now we'd begun to accumulate a bit of a crowd. Buckley's demeanor darkened even further, and I could tell she was about to start shouting at me, when a familiar, godly face appeared from behind Buckley.

'It's alright, babe," Jacob, the light of my life, fire of my loins and the moon to my stars said, putting a hand on Buckley's disgusting shoulder. "Let me handle this."

"Jacob!" I gasped, hardly able to believe he was standing in front of me. I hadn't seen him all summer, and, if possible, he was even more handsome. The same green eyes that used to look at me with such adoration and love now looked at me like I was a crazy lady who showed up to his house in the middle of the night to eat his baby. Which is _so _unfair. I would never eat a baby.

"Dominique," he replied, sounding much less excited than me. Under different circumstances, I might've been heartbroken at Jacob's cold treatment of me, but I had a feeling he was just acting like that because Buckley was there. For whatever reason, he's decided he isn't ready to break up with her yet, but I know it's just a matter of time. "You need to leave."

My face fell. "What?"

He sighed, running a hand through his glorious blond hair. "I'm with Natalie. I've always been with Natalie. I'll always be with Natalie. You need to leave us alone."

Just thinking about it makes me want to sacrifice myself to the Giant Squid. I've done a lot of humiliating things in my life (I'm happy to report I was once voted Most Likely to reveal Something Embarrassing About Myself to a Reporter and Thus Drag the Weasley Family Name Through the Mud by my entire family) but nothing has ever come close to the feeling of being rejected by my one true love in front of half the student body. It was even worse than having Natalie Buckley dump a jar of pumpkin juice on my head in the Great Hall last school year. Although, to be fair, that's actually happened to me quite a bit over the course of my Hogwarts career. I go to school with a _lot _of touchy people.

After the moment that will forever go down in my memory as the Humiliating Rejection of 2020, I ran back to my compartment, trying not to cry. I felt like everyone's eyes were on me, which isn't a necessarily uncommon experience, but this time I don't think everyone's stares were because of how beautiful I am, like they usually are. This time I think it had something to do with how pathetic I am.

Anyway, not long after that horrendous debacle, the train arrived at the station. At this point, Madeleine joined us to share a carriage back to the castle, but I was too upset to be happy about seeing her, even though she's been in Italy with her family all summer. Violet explained what happened to her in a hushed tone, while I stared out the window like a bereft widow of a fallen soldier.

It's not as if I thought Jacob would welcome me back with open arms, or anything. Well, okay, that's exactly what I thought, but that's beside the point. I know that to anyone who doesn't know all the details of our relationship, that might seem crazy, but if they knew what we were like together, they'd understand.

Jacob Zeller has genuine feelings for me. _I know it. _

All I have to do is get him to admit it.

**Two hours later, hyperventilating up a storm **

**7th Year Gryffindor Girl Dormitories, Hogwarts Castle, Scotland, World. **

Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God, _oh my God! _

The most insane thing since empire waist robes came back in style just happened. I'm not joking, what just went down in the corridor will forever go down in infamy as _The Most Insane Thing That Has Ever Happened in All of Hogwarts' History. _

And before you ask, yes, I am including when Death Eaters overtook the Castle and the Battle of Hogwarts ensued.

Maybe I should start at the beginning.

The Most Insane Thing That Has Ever Happened in All of Hogwarts' History (MITTHEHAHH) all started when the prefects left to lead the ickle firsties to their new dorms. Naturally, the seventh years all walked back together because we are mature, responsible and can handle inner House unity.

Hahahahahahahahaha.

In all seriousness, Violet and I were walking back to the Gryffindor dorms, and fell into step with none other than Mason Wood, bane of the human race, and darling Freddie. I of course protested this heinous intermingling, but Wood was adamant on speaking to Violet, because apparently being her captain also meant the right to monopolize all of her free time. Not that she minded. Violet is rather mad for Quidditch, which surprises some people because there aren't a lot of things Violet likes. When her father bought her a kitten for her sixteenth birthday, she immediately sold it for money to buy shoes. Don't get me wrong, she's a great friend. Just not very sentimental.

"Wood, is it really necessary to start ambushing your teammates before classes even begin?" I asked once I'd had enough of Wood's incessant strategizing. This happened about two minutes into the conversation. Patience has never been my strong suit. "Surely the voices in your head will understand if you take a night off from being clinically insane."

He stopped talking long enough to glare at me.

"Not that _you _would care, but we need to start strategizing now if we want to win the Cup this year," he scoffed. "Do you think Ravenclaw won last year because Phipps let the team take _breaks?" _

I snorted at his mention of Ravenclaw's last captain, master of the kegstand. "Phipps was an imbecile. If you're following his example, we have bigger issues at hand."

Wood's responding scowl could've terrified a lesser woman. "He may have been an imbecile with questionable taste in his players-" I glared at his implication that Jacob didn't deserve his captaincy- "but he was a brilliant strategist. I'd be a fool not to acknowledge that."

I rolled my eyes. Everything is always so life and death with Wood. He probably thought that if he went a single day without talking about Quidditch Dumbledore himself would roll over in his grave.

Before I could make a witty retort (and trust me, I had a lot of witty retorts in my arsenal) all hell broke loose.

"_Flipendo!_" an angry, familiar voice called out. A resounding thud could be heard, as well a deep groaning noise.

Freddie and I exchanged a horrified look.

"Fuck," he said.

"Fuck," I agreed.

We rounded the corner, to be met with the image of an infuriated James, towering over an unconscious Jacob Zeller.

After I gave James a quick once over to make sure he wasn't injured, my gaze turned toward the love of my life.

"Jacob!" I cried, falling to my knees by his side. I cradled his head in my lap. "Are you alright?"

"Sure, ask the tosser if he's _alright," _James sneered, eyes flicking about wildly. "As if he doesn't deserve everything I did to him."

I glared at my cousin. James has always been hotheaded, but I never thought he would resort to violence against an innocent bystander. Something must be seriously wrong with him if he could believe that Jacob would ever do anything to deserve such treatment.

"You need to get out of here before a professor finds you," Freddie told James, immediately going into protective older cousin mode. "Do you have the Map on you?"

"What he _needs _is to explain what he was thinking!" I cried, stroking Jacob's soft hair.

"Lily has it," James answered Freddie, completely ignoring me. I threw my hands up in the air and continued cooing at Jacob's injured form. James was beginning to look panicked, and we all knew why. After a particularly nasty incident last year, Professor Hathaway told him that if he got one more mark on his record, he could be suspended. "What should I do?"

Freddie took a deep breath. "Go to your room," he instructed. "Dom and I will take care of this."

"Like hell I will!" I exclaimed, righteously angered that he would speak on my behalf. The only thing I thought I would be doing was taking Jacob to the Hospital Wing.

"Dominique," Freddie hissed. "Don't be so selfish."

I know this may come as a bit of a shock to all of you, but that wasn't the first time I'd been called selfish. Normally, I don't mind, because who gives a fuck what other people think, right? Hearing it from Freddie is different though. He's so rarely serious, which makes it all the more meaningful when he is. If he's telling me that I've crossed the line, then I'll trust him on it. Even if I don't know what exactly I'm doing wrong.

I met his brown eyes with my blue. "Okay," I said, voice shaky. "Okay. Just tell me what to do."

James flashed me a grateful glance, but I didn't respond. I had no idea how, or what was even going on.

"How can I help?" I'd almost forgotten Wood was there, I was so caught up in James and Jacob. Leave it to Mason Wood to intrude in matters that don't concern him.

James' grateful look melted into bitterness. I thought I knew why. There's no way he'd get over Wood taking the job at WWW, whether Wood was his captain or not.

"Like I'd want help from a traitor," James sulked.

Even I had to roll my eyes at James' dramatics. And if I, Dominique Weasley, the same girl who once ran away to France to avoid cleaning my room is calling you dramatic than you have a problem.

"James," Freddie cut in sharply. He bit his lip, weighing his options. "I'll walk you back to the dorms. Mason, Dom, take Zeller to the Hospital Wing."

I nodded, but something was still troubling me.

"What should I do when he wakes up?" I asked. We were doing all this to make sure James stayed out of trouble, but if Jacob woke up and told someone what happened, what would even be the point?

Freddie and Wood exchanged a significant look, which did nothing to help my understanding of the issue.

"Let Mason take care of it," Freddie commanded. Apparently I didn't look convinced, because he sighed. "Everything will work out, Dommie. Jacob will be okay and James won't be in any trouble. Stop worrying."

He turned to leave then, ushering James along with him. I was sighing after them, absentmindedly running my fingers through Jacob's silky locks, when I was rudely interrupted by the Quidditch obsessed troll, otherwise known as Mason Wood.

"We should get going," he urged tersely, looking around to make sure no one was watching us.

I nodded, gently moving Jacob's head from my lap to the floor. Once I was standing, I got out my wand and began levitating him.

For awhile, Wood and I walked in complete silence. That may not have bothered him, but I for one cannot _stand _awkward silences, even with people I hate. I'd rather debate the pros and cons of various professional Quidditch teams with Wood than walk in awkward silence with him, which is really saying something, because talking about Quidditch with Wood is what I imagine diving into a pool of lava feels like.

"What should we say when Monsieur Blanchet asks us what happened?" I blurted out, more for the sake of filling the silence than actual curiosity.

Wood eyed me for a long time before answering. Was he _trying _to make me even edgier than I already was? Because if so, he was succeeding.

"That we found him lying in the corridor," Wood scoffed. "Obviously."

I sighed. "So how exactly are you supposed to keep Jacob from telling everyone what happened?"

Wood shrugged. "That's for me to know and you to find out."

At this point, my blood was boiling, but I refrained from exploding at him. Partially because I am a mature, responsible young woman who knows how to pick her battles, but also because we'd finally reached the Hospital Wing.

Wood cleared his throat and got out his wand. Screwing his face up in concentration, he murmured a spell that had me reeling from where I stood.

"was that-" I choked on my own words. "Was that _Obliviate_?"

At seventeen, Wood should not be able to do _memory _charms. They were for far more advanced witches and wizards, not obnoxious teenaged Quidditch loons. We hadn't even started studying them yet. Besides being shocked, I also have to admit I'm a little jealous. _I'm _usually the best at Charms in any given situation.

"Don't worry about it," he said, which obviously only made me worry about it even more.

I mean, honestly, how fucking shady is that? Why does Wood know magic we haven't even learned yet? Is he some sort of prodigy in disguise? Worried that if people know he's not an imbecile it'll ruin his rep? Not that his rep is that impressive in the first place. Wood's rather notorious for leaving parties before the alcohol even makes an appearance.

I wanted to interrogate him further to find out what the actual fuck was going on, but he opened the doors before I could.

"_Mon dieu!" _Monsieur Blanchet cried upon seeing us levitating Jacob in. He glared in my direction. "What did you do now, Dominique?"

The thing about Monsieur Blanchet is that I really should be his favorite student. Not many people at Hogwarts can speak French, and here I am, a beautiful half-French woman, always willing to converse about the old country or exchange croissant recipes with him. Try telling him that though. He's hated me ever since first year when I accidentally charmed Freddie's broomstick to crash into Jillian Samson, who in turn crashed into Zoe Smith, who in turn crashed into Killian Evans, who in turn crashed into a building and broke several bones in his body. That incident forever crushed Monsieur Blanchet's hope that I'd ever end up like his favorite student Victoire, which I actually think is a good thing. Being compared to Victoire is the _worst. _She's so lame it's just embarrassing at this point.

"Me?!" I exclaimed. "Why do you always assume I'm at fault? Do you see this man? He's the _love of my life_. Do you honestly think I would ever injure the love of my life? _Je m'attendais á mieux de vous!" _

Monsieur Blanchet flashed me a look, like he didn't think I wanted to know the answer to that question.

"If you didn't do anything, then what happened?" he asked in his thick accent.

Wood answered before I could even open my mouth.

"Weas- Dominique and I were walking back to the Gryffindor dorms when we saw Zeller passed out in the hall," he explained.

Who knew Wood was such an excellent liar? Being friends with Freddie must've corrupted him quite a bit.

"You didn't see what happened?" Monsieur Blanchet asked, skeptically.

I stayed silent, letting Wood do the talking for me. If I spoke, I couldn't guarantee that I wouldn't accidentally say something incriminating against James. I still had no idea what James and Jacob were arguing about.

"No," Wood insisted immediately. "We didn't see anything."

Monsieur Blanchet still looks skeptical, but he lets it slide out of concern for Jacob. At least he has his priorities straight, which is more than I can say for Wood, who turned to leave as soon as Blanchet's back is turned, without so much as another word.

I growled in frustration. More than anything, I wanted to stay by Jacob's side and be there when he woke up to nurse him back to health. Victoire once took a class on Muggle psychology, and she told me about this concept called _imprinting, _where baby ducks become attached to the first person they see when they're born, whether it's their mother or a human. Maybe if I was the first thing Jacob saw when he woke up, he'd form a similar attachment to me. I'd be his own personal Florence Nightingale.

As much as I wanted that, I also couldn't let Wood get away without questioning him about his use of _Obliviate. _For all I knew, Wood and Freddie could've been planning to rob Gringotts or something equally stupid that requires the use of a memory charm. If that was the case, it was my duty as Freddie's flesh and blood- no, as a _British citizen- _to find out what they were doing and stop or (depending on the situation) help them.

Not that Wood usually partakes in Freddie's schemes. He's entirely too devoted to his ridiculous Quidditch team to ever jeopardize his position as captain. Still, the few times (and I really must stress _few) _that Wood has ever gotten into any trouble has been because of Freddie roping him into some idiotic prank.

With one last longing look in Jacob's direction I took off after Wood.

"Wait up!" I cried, running toward him. My skirt was probably riding up as I ran, but I couldn't bring myself to care. Wood would never look at my legs any way. Acknowledging anything attractive about another human being probably requires a pulse or something.

Wood paused, turning back to look at me. He had an unreadable expression on his face. Part of me wished he _would _look at my legs, because at least then I'd know how to act around him. He's the only guy (who isn't gay/related to me) at Hogwarts that's never once looked at me with anything even close to desire. I might be offended by that if Wood had ever expressed interest in another girl or guy, but as far as I know, he's as chaste as a monk.

"Yes, Weasley?" he asked, sighing.

"Where the fuck did you learn how to do a memory charm?" I demanded, tugging my skirt down. Just because he didn't notice my killer legs doesn't mean I had to be standing around with my arse hanging out.

"None of your fucking business," he countered, a steely look coming across his blue eyes.

I glowered at him. I'm lucky that we're the same height, because it's difficult to appear intimidating when you have to constantly look up at them.

"Why does everyone always try to tell me that things which are _definitely _my business aren't really my business?" I exclaimed, tugging at the ends of my hair in frustration. "This became my business the moment I saw my cousin unlawfully attack an innocent bystander and lied to protect him, _without knowing why. _I'm sacrificing my morals here, the least you could do is tell me where you learned a bloody memory charm."

Wood let out a barking laugh, but it somehow seemed more angry than goodhumored.

"_Your morals?" _he hissed. "Weasley, how is it possible that a functioning human being could be so _dense? _James is your cousin. That should be reason enough to want to keep him from getting suspended."

"Not if he was _attacking someone for no reason!" _I almost shouted, my heart pounding in my chest like an incessant drum.

"How do you know it was for no reason?" Wood countered, crossing his arms over his chest and glaring even further at me. "You didn't even ask him what happened."

I blinked, surprised Wood had to even ask. "It was _Jacob. _He would never do anything to provoke that kind of reaction out of anyone."

Wood's choked out a short, barking laugh so bitter and disbelieving that it made me shiver. "Zeller's a prick," he said flatly. "An unoriginal, privileged, idiotic _prick. _Of course he would do something to provoke that kind of reaction out of someone. Besides, you've known James his entire life. Since when does he ever act out like that without good reason?"

Despite my conviction that Jacob is most certainly _not _a prick, I also was beginning to realize that wood was right about James. Sure, he's gotten into a scrape or two or ten in his day, but he never does anything cruel without reason.

So if that's true, then why did he attack someone as universally beloved as Jacob? Did something happen with them over the summer? Was it Quidditch related? Could James possibly have been defending my _honor _after the Humiliating Rejection of 2020_? _The world may never know.

After watching me deliberate for a few more moments with his typical intensity, Wood scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"It's pretty obvious why the Sorting Hat didn't put you in Hufflepuff isn't it?" he asked with a withering glare. "Not a lot of family loyalty in you, is there?"

I wanted to defend myself and tell the brainless Quidditch robot that there is _plenty _of family loyalty in me, thank you very much, but that doesn't mean I have to blindly support them in everything they do. Take my cousin Lucy's last haircut for example. As soon as I saw it, I made sure to let her know how awful she looked, even when Victoire scolded me for being a bitch. Even Lucy knew I was right once she caught a second glimpse of herself in the mirror. It was thanks to _my _honesty that she went back to the salon and had them fix it. Without me, she'd be walking around with a fringe, when fringes are so clearly not right for her face shape.

They don't call me a martyr for nothing.

Alright, so maybe no one in the history of time has ever called me a martyr, but my _point _is that sometimes it's more important to be honest than loyal. And if we're being _honest, _James hasn't always had the best track record when it comes to not hexing people in corridors. In fact, it's actually a pretty shoddy track record. He's hexed more people in corridors than I've fallen in love with, and that's really saying something.

Instead of telling Wood all this, I went for the bitchy teenage girl act, my fall back defense mechanism for when boys are mean to me. It works like a charm every time.

"I honestly have no idea why no one's ever wanted to date you, Wood," I hissed, glowering. "With a personality like yours, it's a real mystery."

He flushed and I tried to suppress the jolt of pleasure that raced through my body at the sight of his embarrassment.

What can I say, maybe I really _am _a martyr.

"Dating everyone under the sun only to be chucked once they realize how crazy you are isn't much better than being single, Dominique," Wood retorted, words dripping with venom.

For some reason, Wood using my first name felt even colder than using my surname, like he usually does when talking to me. His words hit me like a ton of bricks and I can tell he knows it, because I see a brief flash of guilt on his face before he turns around and starts walking toward his dormitory.

I give Wood ample time for a head start, not wanting to run into him on my own sojourn back to the dormitories. On the walk back, I do my best to not dwell on Wood's hurtful words, or the drama earlier with the whole Humiliating Rejection of 2020 business. Instead, I think about Jacob and the way he used to look at me when we were together. It was as if I was the sun, and he was one of the many planets that revolved around me. There's no way anyone could ever fake that kind of love.

I resolve to visit him in the Hospital Wing, first thing in the morning before classes start. That would probably be before Natalie Buckley heard about the incident in the corridor, which means I would have the perfect opportunity to ask him a.) why the bloody fucking hell James felt the need to attack him and b.) why the bloody fucking hell he hasn't broken up with Natalie Buckley yet.

By the time I've arrived at my dormitory, all the other girls are already asleep. Though I wish Violet and Madeleine were awake so I could tell them all about the insanity that had just ensued, I'm grateful Alexandra and Phoebe weren't around to be horrible. All throughout dinner tonight we've studiously ignored each other, but I know that eventually I'll be forced to interact with the devil and her accomplice, and it won't be pretty. That's just how things are sometimes, though. Occasionally, the good have to suffer.

Let's reflect over everything I've learned today, shall we?

WHAT I'VE LEARNED ABOUT THIS GAME WE CALL LIFE FROM MY FIRST DAY BACK AT SCHOOL:

1.) No matter how much you lecture a certain owl who shall remain nameless on proper train compartment etiquette, there is still a pretty good chance said owl will throw all caution to the wind and wreak some good old fashioned mayhem. Obviously said owl doesn't _mean _to offend anyone, she is merely a bit feistier than the average female, but there are some people (who shall also remain nameless even if they don't deserve such anonymity) that just don't appreciate a decent personality these days. Such cruel and heartless people will make you put said owl back in her cage, even if it doesn't leave her _nearly _enough room to roam, and not mind even a little bit when she visibly appears disheartened by her imprisonment. As my idol Marie Antoinette would probably say, life is _tres _cruel.

2.) Making fun of the Gobstones Club within Jillian Samson's hearing is a horrendous mistake with life altering consequences. Obviously, my being the saint I am, I'm not the one who had to find this out the hard way. Rather, it was Devin White and Christian Mayberry, 6th year Ravenclaws of the highest order of douchery who mocked Jillian's precious Gobstones Club and paid for it by having twenty points marked off their house. _Twenty points! _Off Jillian's _own house! _All for an off the cuff remark about penis size (or lack of) in serious Gobstones players! Don't get me wrong, it was hilarious and gratifying to see the Ice Queen so angry for once, but _Jacob _is a Ravenclaw. I don't want his house to suffer just because Jillian Samson can't control her passion for Gobstones.

3.) When interacting with one Violet Ogden, it is always wise to avoid using trigger words like "sunshine" and "happiness" and "positivity." As the adorably naive new Gryffindor firsties had to learn over dinner tonight, that sort of behavior results in a vicious scolding and warning that Violet has no problem feeding children to the Giant Squid. Luckily the always pleasant and soothing Madeleine Prescott was there to soften the blow of Violet's frightening personality, or else I fear the Great Hall might have flooded from the first year's collective tears. Poor firsties. Violet always tries scaring them the first night back so they don't bother her, but I think it might be kind of nice to have a first year hanging around us. Our own personal mascot and whatnot. Once the idea struck me, I tried my hardest to look approachable so first years would be open to the idea, but I don't think I sold myself very well. As you might imagine, dinner was quite an emotional experience for me and I spent most of it pouting into my soup, reciting Muggle love poetry. It does not appear first years appreciate the words of Pablo Neruda as much as they should. Maybe I should take it upon myself to educate them in the art? Note to self: begin planning for a poetry lesson over breakfast sometime next week. Maman would be so proud of me for bringing culture to Hogwarts.

4.) Just because Freddie missed the perfect opportunity for a back to school prank, does not mean he doesn't have anything up his sleeve. He's been known in the past to build up our expectations, bring them down by not doing anything and then, just when we've began to relax, strike with something insane. Need I remind anyone of the Exploding Pumpkin Juice Catastrophe of 2017? I didn't think so. As the late Alastor Moody would say, we must maintain "Constant vigilance!" Needless to say, I'll be carrying around Roxie's umbrella with me for the next few weeks. No one needs to see a repeat of my hair after the Personal Thundercloud Dispute of Third Year. Even I'm not cruel enough to subject the unexpecting population to something as cruel as that.

5.) Apparently, avoiding your mortal enemies is an even more appealing option than getting into a fight with them every time you cross paths! Trust me, I'm just as shocked as you are. There hasn't been a Welcome Back dinner since our fifth year without Alexandra Davies and I getting into it. Being a seventh year must mean we've magically been bestowed with some kind of supreme maturity, because when I saw her at dinner laughing about the Gobstones/penis issue with Phoebe Clarke I didn't feel even the slightest urge to hex her. Seriously. Not even a little bit. Is this what growing up feels like? I can't decide whether or not I like it. On one hand, not arguing with my mortal enemy leaves more time for my passions, like educating the younger generation about the fine art of poetry. On the other hand, Alexandra is awful and _someone _needs to be around to knock her down a few pegs whenever she gets too insufferable. So, whenever she breathes, basically.

6.) It's important to never give up on true love! No matter what obstacles stand in your way. For example, I'm currently in a bit of a situation with this one bloke who has a girlfriend. Obviously it is important to respect your fellow women, but have you ever considered what to do when your one true love is currently entangled with someone who you have every reason to suspect of being a harpy in disguise? It's practically your civic duty to do everything in your power to break them up. And I will.

7.) Mason Wood becomes more of a prat with every passing year. Enough said.


End file.
